1. Plenty of life left in the IT department: Forrester

IT departments need to reform their engagement and delivery models, according to Forrester analysts Charles Betz and Will McKeon-White. The pair argue that a centralised IT department is not the root cause of bad IT delivery. They also note that leading companies recognise there’s still a need for some form of centralised engineering.

2. Looking ahead: CIO priorities for 2022

In the year ahead, chief executives and their boards are looking for IT chiefs to build on their recent digital transformation achievements. This will require CIOs to take on new responsibilities for delivering great customer experiences and sustainable IT, while selling technology as a value generator.

3. Gartner CIO survey highlights AI, cloud and cybersecurity

A new survey from Gartner found that the majority of CIOs are focusing their current investments on AI and distributed cloud technology. The 2022 CIO and Technology Executive Survey focuses on ‘business composability’, which involves the mindset, technologies and operating capabilities that enable organisations to innovate and adapt quickly to changing business needs.

4. Cross-functional IT teams grow in importance

Blending IT and business professionals in agile teams with autonomy over outcomes is fast becoming a key factor for digital success, according to Sun Life CIO Laura Money. She believes such teams are “much more productive and can make things happen faster”. With the world needing to become more digital, Money suggested tech and business strategies need to merge.

With the ‘castle and moat’ model of security no longer effective, CIOs need to focus on a number of cybersecurity trends. These trends include the growing need for IT monitoring and security to keep pace with the shift to the cloud, and for cybersecurity and data quality improvements related to AI and machine-learning projects.

5. The major IT security trends for CIOs

With the ‘castle and moat’ model of security no longer effective, CIOs need to focus on a number of cybersecurity trends. These trends include the growing need for IT monitoring and security to keep pace with the shift to the cloud, and for cybersecurity and data quality improvements related to AI and machine-learning projects.

6. Operations and senior management differ on hybrid strategy

Operations teams are finding it difficult to implement long-term decisions made by senior management around remote operations driven by the pandemic. Around three-quarters of CEOs believe that strategies to modernise and digitally optimise their future workplaces are defined and agreed, according to NTT’s 2021 Global Workplace Report. But less than half of operational leaders agree that’s the case, the report states.

7. How 2022 could be the year of the CIO

After a challenging 2021, 2022 could be the year in which public-sector CIOs gain the prominence they deserve at board level, according to Max Jones, managing partner for health at Agilisys. Over the past 18 months, he says, the value of data in driving innovation and action has been clearly demonstrated, meaning it is time for CIOs to highlight their board credentials.

8. List names the 10 most innovative CIOs of 2021

Analytics Insight identifies the CIOs it says have conceived business advantage through the disruptive use of technology. It highlights the 10 IT leaders for creating an edge in the tech ecosystem and improving business processes and relationships with customers, as well as evolving to play a more strategic role in the C-suite.

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